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Storm's Peak
Storm's Peak is the ancestral fortress and seat of power of House Ryalor, situated on the island of Eastisle. It is situated on a massive, stormy cliff overlooking both the sea on one side and the city of Peltarra on the other and is widely recognized as being one of the most formidable fortresses in Fyador, having been redesigned and added on to over the centuries by its noble-and later imperial-owners. Construction and Layout The basic layout of the fortress consists of a central citadel which surrounded by a massive outer curtain wall seventy-five feet high, being fifty feet thick on the seaward side and twenty-five feet thick facing the land. The interior of the wall is comprised of an outer shell of stone and an inner core of sand and debris to help cushion it from heavy artillery attacks, and is remarked to be kept so smooth that few grappling hooks can find purchase on it. The defensive ramparts lining the tops of the wall and the citadel are well protected by numerous roofed battlements which provide near-complete protection to archers and few places for assault by ladder or by siege engine. Strategically placed artillery emplacements comprised of a combination of ballistae and catapults capable of throwing pots of clingfire at attackers provide the additional heavy firepower necessary to fend off artillery or naval bombardments, with specialized long-range variants situated on its seaward side. There is but a single entryway into the castle, protected by a series of three heavy reinforced wooden gates leading into the castle, each seperated and protected by portculli as well ports for boiling oil and archers, making it very difficult to break through all three without taking massive casualties. The main itself consists of a single large, primary drum tower flanked by two smaller additions, so that one observing from the sea can see what appears to be a trident stabbing defiantly at the sky. It is large enough to shelter an armory, barracks, numerous wells, a feast hall, and chambers for nobility and military officers alike. There is a watery cavern underneath the cliff on which it resides which is connected to the castle via internal stairwells, capable of holding one large or two medium sized ships within it, protected and barred by a massive steel portcullis, thus enabling the fortress to be resupplied by friendly vessels during times of siege. The fortress does not lack for water, either, being connected by a series of wells, tunnels, and pipes to a freshwater aquifer further inland. Overall, it is an effective fortress designed to allow a comparatively small force to hold off besiegers who far outnumber them either by land or by sea, though if it can be said to be oriented toward either ground or naval defense, it would lean toward the latter with its walls being thicker and most of its more heavy artillery being situated toward the seaward side, a reflection of its principle role of fending off foreign fleets and pirates. Current Status Presently, the citadel is held by House Ryalor under the command of Lord Regent Alexei, holding it in the name of Emperor Falun I's kits. It is garrisoned by half of the First Regiment, with Battalions I, II, and III stationed there, to hold off any attempts at capture by the other powers on Eastisle as well as to provide support to the neighboring Peltarra. It is presently open and friendly to military and civilian vessels of the Vulpine Imperium, where much-needed supplies such as timber, metal, ammunition, fresh water, and food can be requestioned by Ryalorian charter or indepedently bartered for on longer voyages to the west to either mainland Fyador, Varangia, or south to Felmar, the Mahsterious Sahthern Cahntinent, or Callispar. Category:House Ryalor Category:Eastisle